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Ok... bit of back up... Bought the car needing a clutch.. Also had no radio... Took it to a bad mechanic unknowingly.. Got clutch replaced a couple times... After the last time he worked on it my a/c was no longer working,and the guide pin passenger side on radiator was ripped up causing radiator leak... Took it to an awesome mechanic who installed new radiator.... Installed radio myself... Used to do it a lot when i was younger.. Blast ahead a couple years... Don't remember transmission or motor mount... One was broken and rubbed a hole in the hydraulic line for clutch... Had that all fixed but the second mechanic... Worked great until recently when i moved to Portland... Had the power steering pump, rack n pinion, and brakes completely replaced before i came here... All had bad leaks.... Over all it had been a great car... All this time on the same battery.... Lights have dimmed with radio since i stated driving the Car... Or when the idle is down it dims slightly.... And recently not been starting all the time and speedometer bouncing when the accelerator is pressed.... Currently I'm driving with the radio face off to see if the drain stops... Thought back story may give other ideas as well

Normally what happens is the speed sensor on the transmission shorts out (due to the wiring at the sensor end fraying and cracking) and the PATS system will lockout. This will cause a no-start condition. Basic symptom is flashing PATS light (Red light on the center dash plate that says "Contour" - That is unless you swapped it out for a clock). Speed sensors are cheap and removeal and installation are pretty simple. I would start by checking that first as it's quite common.